Vision Times tells the world everything about China in today's context. We keep a close eye on China because of its influence now and the lessons we can learn from its ancient past to better our lives today. At the death of her dear friend, Ye Xian broke down and sobbed by the water’s edge. Suddenly, an ancient spirit appeared and informed her that the fish’s bones contained a powerful spirit and that if she ever needed anything, she should kowtow before them and make a wish. Ye Xian found the bones and hid them.

Third Brother is the youngest son of Father’s first marriage, he is the stepson of Niang, and the second youngest of the stepchildren. Third Brother is the only sibling that Adeline has a… Niang is the stepmother to Adeline and her four older siblings and the natural mother to 4th Younger Brother (Franklin) and Little Sister (Susan). Niang is married to Adeline's father one year after the death of Adeline's mother, at the age of 17. Father is very proud of his "French" wife, showing her off to friends and treating her to her every whim. At Ancient Origins, we believe that one of the most important fields of knowledge we can pursue as human beings is our beginnings. And while some people may seem content with the story as it stands, our view is that there exist countless mysteries, scientific anomalies and surprising artifacts that have yet to be discovered and explained.Yen Mah also writes of her grandfather's younger sister (Yan Shuzhen), [3] whom she calls 'Grand Aunt'. She cites Yan Shuzhen as founder and president of the Shanghai Women's Commercial and Savings Bank. [4] Shuzhen's colleagues would often call her 'Gong Gong', meaning Grand Uncle. [4] Yen Mah's Early life [ edit ] Mair, Victor H. "The First Recorded Cinderella Story". In: Hawai‘i Reader in Traditional Chinese Culture. Edited by Victor H. Mair, Nancy Shatzman Steinhardt and Paul R. Goldin. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2005. pp. 363-367. https://doi.org/10.1515/9780824852351-061 Adeline's eldest brother is distinct from the other three in that he often shows a maturity corresponding to his position, albeit interposed with flashes of malice that corrode any of Adeline's built-up good will. Big Brother, along with his other two natural brothers, is forced to have an outdated hairstyle and wear antiquated clothes, leading to much ridicule from their classmates. Although he takes up the banner of rebellion against Niang, his resolve is extinguished by his stepmother's all-encompassing influence. Anyone who is an avid reader of fairy tales, or who has seen the 1950 Disney version of "Cinderella" has a hint as to what happens next. Though her meeting with her royal suiter does not occur here, Ye Xian is the star of the party, praised for her outstanding beauty and grace. But the presence of her stepfamily threatens her identity. When she fears they might have recognized her, she flees and leaves behind one of her valuable golden shoes.

I'll end this review with a passage from the preface of Chinese Cinderella, one that made me love the book right from the start:

Mah, Adeline Yen (2015). Chinese Cinderella. London: Puffin Books. p.265. ISBN 978-0-14-135941-0. OCLC 914452896. The book outlines Adeline's struggle to find a place where she feels she belongs. She did not get very much love from her parents, she finds some solace in relationships with her grandfather (Ye Ye) and her Aunt Baba, but they are taken from her as Niang deems them to exert a bad influence on the children. Adeline immerses herself in striving for academic achievement in the hope of winning her family's appreciation, but also for its own rewards as she finds great pleasure in words and scholarly success, progressing in things that her father and step-mother had never expected, for example by topping her class. She has many friends at school who love her for who she is, but they do not know about her inside life. It hurt so badly I couldn’t sleep. I screamed in pain and begged my mother to free my feet, but she wouldn’t. In fact, the pain has never gone away. My feet have hurt every day since they were bound and continue to hurt today. I had a pair of perfectly normal feet when I was born, but they maimed me on purpose and gave me lifelong arthritis so I would be attractive.” Chinese Cinderella, p.8